Rami Malek pays homage to his Egyptian roots at 2019 Oscars

Rami Malek finished off his fairytale awards season and as expected took home the Academy Award for Best Actor.

At the 91st Academy Awards, Malek won the coveted trophy for his role as Freddie Mercury in Bohemian Rhapsody. He adds the Oscars to wins at the BAFTAs and Golden Globes earlier this year.

The 37-year-old actor went on to pay homage to his Egyptian roots during his speech:

“I am the son of immigrants from Egypt, a first-generation American. And part of my story is being written right now. And I could not be more grateful to each and every one of you, and everyone who believed in me for this moment. It’s something I will treasure for the rest of my life.”

Malek went on to pay tribute to his mother who was at the awards show as well.

"Oh my God. My mum is in here somewhere. I love you lady. My family, thank you for all of this. My dad didn't get to see me do any of this, but I think he's looking down on me right now, so this is a monumental moment," he said.

“I may not have been the obvious choice, but I guess it worked out,” said Malek thanking Fox and “everyone who believed in me. It’s something I will treasure for the rest of my life.”

Bohemian Rhapsody was almost a decade in the making. The project had been stuck in development, going through numerous actors and directors , including Sacha Baron Cohen and David Fincher. There were disagreements with the surviving members of the band, the script was re-written a couple of times, and it looked destined to fail.

The Arab American is best known for his lead role as Elliot Alderson in the hit TV series Mr Robot, for which he won a Critic’s Choice Award and Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor in a drama series.

Malek, who was born in Los Angeles and the son of a former Cairo tour guide and later door-to-door insurance salesman.